When it comes to electricity and electrical devices, organizations such as the National Electrical Manufacturers Association (NEMA) and Underwriters Laboratories, Inc. (UL) try to make living and working with modern conveniences safer for installers and end-users.


In January, NEMA and UL announced changes to the UL Standard 943 Standard for Safety for Ground-Fault Circuit Interrupters (GFCIs) that will take effect on June 29, 2015. All manufacturers must meet these revisions with GFCIs produced as of that date. Current GFCI designs may continue to be sold and installed until inventories are depleted.


The revisions to the standard were developed by a NEMA-led group in response to the Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC) requesting automonitoring requirements on GFCIs. NEMA has stated that GFCIs need to be tested periodically; however, most end-users don’t do so regularly. Furthermore, NEMA said, even with regular testing, it is possible for an undetected failure or malfunction to occur between tests. A system of automonitoring would solve those problems.


Responding to CPSC staff concerns, UL approved a NEMA-sponsored proposal to add GFCI self-test and power denial requirements in the most recent edition of UL 943.


“UL has worked with NEMA members on the UL 943 revisions in an effort to improve the safety of GFCIs and to add a layer of protection for the consumer,” said Lisa Salley, UL’s vice president and general manager–Energy and Power Technologies.


Manufacturers have until June 29 to comply. At that time, electrical contractors should begin evaluating new GFCIs to ensure they have automonitoring systems.